Drying Tobacco in High Humidity?

[NJJesters10]

Title edited for caps and brevity. Rule 9! -jpm

I recently discovered that I enjoy on the dry side when the humidity dropped below 20% the other day. I dried out several jars by just leaving them open and shaking the jars every once in a while until the tobacco was almost crunchy and have been in heaven ever since.

My problem is that its now been 70% and raining for a few days and i want to open a new tin but know that just leaving it out wont get the job done.

Any advice would be welcome. Thank you in advance.

Ps. I do believe I have enough dey to last until the rain lets up, yet even then the humidity is rarely as low as it was the other day

 

[bullet08]

I just leave some out to smoke on a paper plate and check for dryness occasionally. It's rather humid here, but ribbon cut tobacco will be ready in about 40 - 60 min. Flakes take much longer. Could be on the plate for hours. But I only smoke a bowl a day and don't mind waiting.

Some folks use microwave or tea warmer to speed up the process.

 

[FurCoat]

As the days get hotter and you begin to use your air conditioner, the outdoor humidity will not be an issue.

 

[Chasing Embers]

Just pack it lighter.

 

[sablebrush52]

I'n not a fan of nuking tobacco. I can taste the "toasted wheat" flavor in the result. You can place it on a cup warmer, set to low, to evaporate out the moisture, or place another heat source in close proximity, just so it works gently and doesn't "cook" the tobacco.

 

[mortonbriar]

The car dashboard is a good trick if the car is parked in the sun.

 

[workman]

I put some tobacco in an open tin and leave it on a radiator for as long as it takes.
Radiator being a heat source for the house.

 

[romaso]

Try leaving in a bowl in full sun or, if necessary, maybe a warm oven on low heat, like you'd use for drying fruit. Then seal it up in a jar.

 

[fireground_piper]

Most of the time I’m near a heat lamp and that does the trick when it’s humid. Anything that will generate enough warmth to drive the moisture away.

 

[mso489]

A.C. is as common as central heating where I live. Without, people have to fight mold on their shoes just sitting in the closet and such. So a.c. takes care of the tobacco on a routine basis.

Otherwise, you can always try finding the most exposed window where sunlight heats the area, without actually putting the tobacco outdoors in the sun. Outside in the sun might work, as long as you have a place you regular monitor, in person or out the window, like a deck.

You don't want the squirrels and birds coming around for a chaw.

 

[didimauw]

Dehumidifier? Keep it in the room with your tobaccos. If u have one that is.

 

[onestrangeone]

I use a paper plate under a small desk lamp, 5-10 minutes and it’s good to go.

 

[PipeIT]

Hmm, that read like you opened and dried out a whole jar of tabac at once?

I’m not sure anyone would recommend doing it that way.

Also experimentation is a fun part of smoking, trying the same blend at various moisture levels.

I only take out what I’m going to smoke, and spread out on a plate to let dry, and I let it sit to dry naturally with nothing like a fan, or ac blowing on it.

I think most of us leave the tabac alone in the state of moisture it came in when purchased sitting in a mason jar, and only take out to dry, what we are going to smoke at that time.

Also, for aging, cellaring purposes, that moisture is helpful.

 

[NJJesters10]

Currently I have everything in my garage. The weather today has made any paper or wood i have in damp. Once it's AC season i can see that being a good idea, also thought about the dehumidifier.

Seems like my best bet is to find a small heat source like a lamp or cup heater and use that until there's sunshine and lower humidity.

Thanks for the tips and tricks

I've tried smoking wetter and it lead to gurgling and an unpleasant smoke so I dried out a few ounces and keep them in mason jars to keep that at that RH

 

[NJJesters10]

So far I've only tried ribbon cut tobacco, I figured that's easiest to learn with, soon to venture out into the other preparation styles likes cakes and flakes and whatnot

 

[Devo88]

I recently discovered that I enjoy on the dry side when the humidity dropped below 20% the other day. I dried out several jars by just leaving them open and shaking the jars every once in a while until the tobacco was almost crunchy and have been in heaven ever since.

My problem is that its now been 70% and raining for a few days and i want to open a new tin but know that just leaving it out wont get the job done.

Any advice would be welcome. Thank you in advance.

Ps. I do believe I have enough dey to last until the rain lets up, yet even then the humidity is rarely as low as it was the other day

Could you use a food dehydrator ?

 

[Akoni808]

You can leave it on a paper plate, or on paper towels for a little while before you smoke it. The humidity will get absorbed.

 

[workman]

Hmm, that read like you opened and dried out a whole jar of tabac at once?

I’m not sure anyone would recommend doing it that way.

Also experimentation is a fun part of smoking, trying the same blend at various moisture levels.

I only take out what I’m going to smoke, and spread out on a plate to let dry, and I let it sit to dry naturally with nothing like a fan, or ac blowing on it.

I think most of us leave the tabac alone in the state of moisture it came in when purchased sitting in a mason jar, and only take out to dry, what we are going to smoke at that time.

Also, for aging, cellaring purposes, that moisture is helpful.

I certainly dry whole tins at a time. Several actually, because I always have 5-6 different blends open any given time.
The thought of having to take 3-4 bowls worth of different blends in different cuts and moisture levels, getting them to reach optimal smoking humidity at the right time for me to be able to smoke them during the day, everyday.
That's preposterous. I'd quit immediately.

 

[unadoptedlamp]

I don't like the microwave. When I had access to one, I tried it out. It made the tobacco smell awful to me and I couldn't figure out how to use it without cooking the tobacco, even on short bursts.

When I'm in the tropics, I turn on the stove and let it warm up just a little to blast the humidity out. Put the tobacco on a sheet and leave it in for a little while with the stove off.

The trick is to not cook it. You can create a dry environment without much heat and it doesn't cook the tobacco.

Good luck!

 

[monty55]

Your cellar is in your garage? Your cellar should be indoors in a climate-controlled environment. Leaving your tins in the garage to temp and humidity extremes is a really bad idea. Back to your original question... drying a bowls worth of tobacco indoors with Air Conditioning is pretty simple. I live in south Texas, and it gets really humid here. There is no way in hell I could get tobacco to dry outdoors down here.